A View to a Kill
A View to a Kill is the fourteenth spy film of the James Bond series, and the seventh and last to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Although the title is adapted from Ian Fleming's short story "From a View to a Kill", the film has an entirely original screenplay. In A View to a Kill, Bond is pitted against Max Zorin, who plans to destroy California's Silicon Valley. The film was produced by Albert R. Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, who also wrote the screenplay with Richard Maibaum. It was the third James Bond film to be directed by John Glen, and the last to feature Lois Maxwell as Miss Moneypenny. Despite receiving a mixed reception by critics, it was a commercial success, with the Duran Duran theme song "A View to a Kill" performing well in the charts and earning a Golden Globe nomination for Best Song. Christopher Walken was also praised for portraying a "classic Bond villain". Plot MI6 agent James Bond is sent to Siberia to locate the body of 003 and recover a microchip originating from the Soviet Union. Upon his return Q analyses the microchip, establishing it to be a copy of one designed to withstand an electromagnetic pulse and made by government contractor Zorin Industries. Bond visits Ascot Racecourse to observe the company's owner, Max Zorin. Zorin's horse wins a race but proves hard to control. Sir Godfrey Tibbett, a racehorse trainer and MI6 agent, believes Zorin's horse was drugged, although tests proved negative. Through Tibbett, Bond meets French private detective Achille Aubergine who informs Bond that Zorin is holding a horse sale later in the month. During their dinner at the Eiffel Tower, Aubergine is assassinated by Zorin's bodyguard May Day, who subsequently escapes, despite being chased by Bond. Bond and Tibbett travel to Zorin's estate for the horse sale. Bond is puzzled by a woman who rebuffs him and finds out that Zorin has written her a cheque for $5 million. At night, Bond and Tibbett break into Zorin's laboratory learning that he is implanting adrenaline-releasing devices in his horses. Zorin identifies Bond as an agent, has May Day assassinate Tibbett, and attempts to have Bond killed too. General Gogol of the KGB confronts Zorin for killing Bond without permission revealing that Zorin was initially trained and financed by the KGB, but has now gone rogue. Later, Zorin unveils to a group of investors his plan to destroy Silicon Valley which will give him—and the potential investors—a monopoly over microchip manufacture. Bond goes to San Francisco where he learns from CIA agent Chuck Lee that Zorin could be the product of medical experimentation with steroids performed by a Nazi scientist, now Zorin's physician Dr. Carl Mortner. He then investigates a nearby oil rig owned by Zorin and while there finds KGB agent Pola Ivanova recording conversations and her partner placing explosives on the rig. Ivanova's partner is caught and killed, but Ivanova and Bond escape. Later Ivanova takes the recording, but finds that Bond had switched tapes, leaving her with a recording of Japanese music. Bond tracks down the woman Zorin attempted to pay off, State Geologist Stacey Sutton, and discovers that Zorin is trying to buy her family oil business. The two travel to San Francisco City Hall to check Zorin's submitted plans. However, Zorin is alerted to their presence and arrives, killing the Chief Geologist with Bond's pistol and setting fire to the building in order to both frame Bond for the murder and kill him at the same time. Bond and Sutton escape from the fire, but when the police try to arrest Bond, he and Sutton escape in a fire engine. Bond and Sutton infiltrate Zorin's mine, discovering his plot to detonate explosives beneath the lakes along the Hayward and San Andreas faults, which will cause them to flood, causing Silicon Valley and everything within to be submerged underwater forever. A larger bomb is also in the mine to destroy a "geological lock" that prevents the two faults from moving at the same time. Once in place, Zorin and his security chief Scarpine flood the mines and kill the mine workers. Sutton escapes while Bond fights May Day; when she realises Zorin abandoned her, she helps Bond remove the larger bomb, putting the device onto a handcar and pushing it out of the mine, where it explodes, killing her. Zorin, who had escaped in his airship with Scarpine and Mortner, abducts Sutton as Bond grabs hold of the airship's mooring rope. Zorin tries to kill Bond, but he manages to moor the airship to the framework of the Golden Gate Bridge. Sutton attacks Zorin and in the fracas, Mortner and Scarpine are temporarily knocked out. Sutton flees and joins Bond out on the bridge, but Zorin follows them out with an axe. The ensuing fight between Zorin and Bond culminates with Zorin falling to his death, whereupon an enraged Mortner attacks Bond using sticks of dynamite, but Bond cuts the airship free, causing Mortner to drop the dynamite in the cabin, blowing up the airship and killing himself and Scarpine. General Gogol awards Bond the Order of Lenin for foiling Zorin's scheme. Cast *Roger Moore as James Bond, MI6 agent 007. *Christopher Walken as Max Zorin: a psychopathic industrialist, the product of a Nazi genetic experiment planning to destroy the Silicon Valley to gain a monopoly in the microchip market. *Tanya Roberts as Stacey Sutton: The granddaughter of an oil tycoon whose company is taken over by Zorin. *Grace Jones as May Day: Zorin's lover and chief henchwoman. She seemingly possesses superhuman strength. *Patrick Macnee as Sir Godfrey Tibbett: Bond's ally, a horse trainer who helps him infiltrate Zorin's chateau and stables. *Patrick Bauchau as Scarpine: Zorin's murderous loyal associate. *David Yip as Chuck Lee: a CIA agent who assists Bond and Sutton in San Francisco. *Willoughby Gray as Dr. Carl Mortner: formally Hans Glaub, a Nazi scientist and father figure to Zorin (in the German release version, he is a Polish communist). *Fiona Fullerton as Pola Ivanova; a KGB agent known to Bond, sent by Gogol to spy on Zorin. *Manning Redwood as Bob Conley: Zorin's chief mining engineer who handles his oil interests on the East Bay. *Alison Doody as Jenny Flex: One of May Day's assistants who is often seen with Pan Ho. *Robert Brown as M: The head of MI6 *Desmond Llewelyn as Q: An MI6 officer in charge of the research and development branch. He supplies 007 with his equipment for his mission. *Lois Maxwell as Miss Moneypenny: M's secretary (Maxwell's 14th and final appearance in the role). *Geoffrey Keen as Fredrick Gray: The British Minister of Defence. *Walter Gotell as General Gogol: The head of the KGB. *Papillon Soo Soo as Pan Ho: One of May Day's assistants. *Daniel Benzali as W. G. Howe: A city official working at San Francisco City Hall. *Dolph Lundgren in an early, minor role as Venz, one of General Gogol's KGB Henchmen. *Jean Rougerie as French private detective Achille Aubergine. Maud Adams is said to be visible as an extra in one of the Fisherman's Wharf scenes. In the DVD documentary Inside A View to a Kill, Adams explains that she was visiting her friend Moore on location and ended up in the crowd, but admits she is unable to actually see herself in the film; in the same documentary, director John Glen confirms that Adams appears as an extra, but does not specify where she is visible. The appearance remained a mystery for years until she was identified as standing in the background during one of the Fisherman's Wharf scenes. As a result, Adams is confirmed to have appeared in this and two other Bond films, The Man with the Golden Gun in 1974 and Octopussy in 1983. External links * Category:Films Category:1985 release Category:James Bond series Category:Roger Moore films Category:Action Films